The Vintage Vault opened at noon Aug. 7, the day my column about the sign appeared in print. Three minutes later, a man walked in with his wife and daughter and bought the wooden sign, about the size of a bed’s headboard, for $550, store owner Carlos Velastegui Jr. said.

“He had been there throughout childhood,” Velastegui reported. “He said he would put it in his front yard.”

Does he want strangers to knock on his door requesting a table for six?

At 12:05, a second man came in wanting to buy the sign. “He proposed to his wife there,” Velastegui said. But the deal with the first buyer had, like the marriage, already been consummated.

The would-be buyer was philosophical about the loss but gave his contact information to the actual buyer and said he’d buy the sign if the man ever wanted to sell.

“I’ve had several other people call to see if it was still there. Someone came in today, a former employee, and wanted it,” Velastegui said Thursday.

It’s too bad there weren’t multiple Lord Charley’s signs, or Velastegui might be able to retire.

I hadn’t expected to help facilitate a sale of the sign, which had been in the store with no takers since January, but I’m pleased to have briefly boosted the downtown Upland economy. My only regret is not negotiating a 10 percent referral fee.

Oh, Lord Charley

Across Facebook, inspired by my blog post with photos of the Olde English-themed restaurant, former customers and employees proclaimed their love for Lord Charley’s, which operated in Upland from 1971 to 1991 in its original form, followed by another decade as Charley’s Pub.

That’s practically the entire menu, but others chimed in with praise about the Chelsea chicken, corn fritters, steaks, potatoes au gratin, oysters and trifles, which probably takes care of the rest. Clifford Keating even has fond memories of the cheese and crackers.

“One of Upland’s biggest losses was the day it closed,” wrote Roxanne Basica. “We need more quality restaurants in Upland … sigh.”

“There was and is no finer place to eat in Upland,” John Harris declared.

“I have never missed a restaurant like I miss Lord Charley’s,” Anne Woodworth said via email.

One much-loved side dish, Yorkshire pudding, didn’t always end up on customers’ plates.

“We dishwashers,” wrote David Hollander, “used to throw Yorkshires at each other.”

Speaking of pitching, Marilee Wake Binnquist was there during the 1988 World Series, watching the TV in the bar. When her party’s table was ready, they said they’d wait until the end of the inning — and thus got to see Kirk Gibson hit the Series-winning home run.

Jim Rose said his brother-in-law Tom McCauley, a waiter, was working the night a famous race car driver was in the restaurant.

“Story told, A.J. Foyt and friends were having dinner when Tom, who was serving Foyt’s table, accidentally spilled a drink on Foyt’s leather jacket,” Rose related. “Lord Charley’s offered to pay for a new jacket. Whatever the case, Foyt left a very nice tip that evening.”

Two customers said they have the restaurant’s corn chowder recipe, another has its recipe for creamed spinach and a fourth said she has the one for curry chicken and makes it every so often.

The fellow who’s going to put the Lord Charley’s sign in his yard may want to get in touch with all of them, just in case hungry people drop by.

On my blog

The Richfield sign returns to the Cucamonga Service Station after a six-month absence; vintage photos, phone directory ads and a menu from Lord Charley’s are presented; readers and I share what books we read in July; and we eat at Zait Bistro in Rancho Cucamonga and House of Pong in Claremont. Eye this virtual smorgasbord at insidesocal.com/davidallen.

Valley Vignette

I heard the story from his daughter-in-law, Nancy Roberts. George and Lois, his wife, had a stand along Foothill Boulevard under an oak tree where they sold orange juice, dates, citrus and walnuts from their grove even into the 1970s. He died in 1988, after which his grove was torn out and replaced by 110 senior apartments.

David Allen, who only owns orange juice, writes Sunday, Wednesday and Friday. Contact dallen@scng.com or 909-483-9339, like davidallencolumnist on Facebook and follow @davidallen909 on Twitter.

Since 1997, David Allen has been taking up valuable newsprint and pixels at the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, where he is a columnist and blogger (insidesocal.com/davidallen). Among his specialties: city council meetings, arts and culture, people, places, local history, dining and a log in a field that resembled the Loch Ness monster. The Illinois native has spent his newspaper career in California, starting in 1987 at the Santa Rosa News-Herald and continuing at the Rohnert Park-Cotati Clarion, Petaluma Argus-Courier and Victor Valley Daily Press. A resident of Claremont who roots for the St. Louis Cardinals and knows far too much about Marvel Comics, the Kinks and Frank Zappa's Inland Valley years, he is the author of two collections of columns: 'Pomona A to Z' and 'Getting Started.'